When a pistol or other small arms weapon fails in a catastrophic manner, there is usually serious injury or even a possibility of death to the shooter. Some semi-automatic pistols such as the U.S. M9 and the German P38 make use of a locking block to lock the barrel and the slide together during the initial stage of recoil when firing. This lock up occurs during the peak chamber pressure of the firing cycle.
The Army M9 pistol has experienced a problem of catastrophic failure of the slide that can occur after approximately 5000 rounds are fired. The slide breaks apart due to fatigue failure at the locking block slot. When the slide breaks, the rear part of the slide flies off the back end of the weapon and will hit the shooter in the face or chest, depending upon how the weapon is being held at the time.
This dangerous condition has been a concern and has resulted in some speculation that the entire weapon might be repaired after a minimum number of firings. However, with so many weapons and so many different firing schedules, keeping track of the number of rounds fired is not as easy as might be expected. Particularly in times of potential conflict or combat, worrying about the number of rounds fired is a distraction. Also, in times of combat, one uses all the firepower needed to accomplish the orders.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved design for semi-automatic weapons:
Another object of this invention is to provide a safer weapon.
Yet another object of this invention is to provide a safety device for automatic weapons such as the M9 in which the condition of concern can be discerned easily and with already existing equipment.
Still another object is to modify the existing M9 and other weapons of this type with a simple, easy to install modification which does not require changes in the basic components of the weapon.
Other Objects will appear herinafter.